PFAS COG renames subcommittees, plans public-notification push and May in-person meeting

During the meeting COG members discussed subcommittee participation and agreed to rename the confusingly titled “Engaging the Public” subcommittee to “Public Notification.” Members also proposed and supported creating a separate “Community Education” subcommittee to serve as a sounding board and to coordinate outreach strategies for different audiences.

Lynn, a COG member, argued the notification committee’s purpose is timely public notice to affected communities and pushed for clearer tiered notifications (sampling notices, result notices, education) keyed to measured severity. Kelly and other staff said they will reissue the member survey and circulate the new subcommittee names, and that members should sign up for one subcommittee if possible.

The group discussed practical tools for subcommittee minutes and record-keeping. Portia and others recommended read.ai as a transcription/notes tool for Teams; Rick suggested exploring Notion as a collaborative tracking tool. John and other members recommended a human note-taker to produce concise, actionable minutes while using AI as an optional supplement.

Members agreed, in principle, to hold the next COG meeting in person in May and to consider adding an optional site tour (public or MPART site tour) that could be held during daytime hours with an evening session for those who work. Several participants noted that costs (buses, logistics) would need to be addressed and proposed possible co-sponsorship or piggybacking with existing regional groups to reduce expenses.

COG leadership plans to email members to solicit nominations for leadership roles and to confirm who will stay on the group; organizers also asked subcommittees to begin setting measurable goals and tracking metrics (attendance, deliverables, outreach products) to demonstrate progress.